


Assembling For Destiny

by MikeJaffa



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The New Mutants (2020)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:27:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28146087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MikeJaffa/pseuds/MikeJaffa
Summary: Is there a way to integrate the New Mutants into the MCU, even with two years of aging by the cast?  Yes.  Here’s how.
Relationships: Danielle Moonstar/Rahne Sinclair, Roberto da Costa/Illyana Rasputin
Comments: 2
Kudos: 19





	Assembling For Destiny

**Author's Note:**

> AUTHOR’S NOTE: I wrote a similar fic, “Destiny’s Assembly Point,” a couple of months ago based on movie spoilers and New Mutants comic book continuity. Since then, I have seen the New Mutants movie, and I also know, from trivia on Amazon, that they didn’t do reshoots this year because the cast is two years older than they were when they first shot it If they wanted to integrate the New Mutants cast into the MCU, how to account for this? Here's one way it could be done.  
> DISCLAIMER: Marvel owns everything. Just don’t say that too loudly around Illyana.

“Doctor Reyes said the nearest town is 20 miles away,” Roberto said. He, Dani, Rahne, Sam, and Illyana were sitting or standing on the remains of the clinic’s wall.

“She could have been lying,” Illyana said. “Shall we find out?”

No one disagreed. Illyana and her friends started walking towards the gate, away from the hospital and into their future together. 

8

8

**_…two years later…_ **

“No, I’m sorry, I’m putting me feet down—all four of them,” Rahne said. She, Dani, Roberto, Illyana and Sam were sitting around the breakfast table on the veranda of the da Costa family beach house near Rio. Lockheed was in his dragon from perched up on Illyana’s lap, eyeing everyone else’s plates. “If Doctor Strange is giving away the bride,” Rahne went on, “then your best bet is a nondenominational service. Period.” 

Her remarks were directed at Illyana and Roberto, sitting next to each other, with Illyana positioning her hand so everyone could see her engagement ring.

Roberto said, “Rahne, you did just hear me say that my dad has a call in to the bishop of Rio.”

“Aye,” Rahne said, “and you had best have your dad call his grace back and say forget it! Reverend Craig and I made that mistake once. Never again. And that’s without the bride’s side having actual sorcerers on it.”

Dani frowned. “What do you mean, you and Reverend Craig?”

“I told you, I helped out around the church.”

“Yeah, but not that much!”

“Of course. Why do you think I went to him in the first place?”

“What else have you been hiding from me?”

Rahne smiled at her soulmate. “Not much, Love.”

Sam drawled, “I wouldn’t worry about it, Rahne. I think everything will go smoothly. It’s not like we have to worry about an alien invasion or the church being transported to another dimension or--”

Illyana sat up. “Wait—did you feel that?” She got up.

Sam said, “No, what are you talking about?”

Rahne stood and sniffed the air as the whites of her eyes turned black. “No, she’s right. Something has happened.”

“Dayum,” Sam said, “I jinxed it didn’t…hey, guys? I’m not feeling so good…” He slumped in his chair as his clothes and body turned to ash and broke into a cloud.

Dani jumped up. “Sam! Oh…Rahne…” And then she was a cloud of black dust.

“DANI!” Rahne lunged into the particles that had been her lover.

Lockheed popped up onto the table and squeaked at his mistress. Illyana turned just in time to see him dissolve into ash. 

Roberto stood up, and Illyana saw the cloud of ash forming around him.

“No,” Illyana cried as she crossed to Roberto. “Nonononono. Please, no.”

“I’m sorry, Baby. I love you.” He put his hands on her cheeks just as he dissolved into black dust.

“NO!” Illyana screamed. “ROBERTO!”

Rahne turned around. With her enhanced senses, she could hear vehicles crashing on the streets, people crying, and see black dust rising from the beach. “It’s not just us,” she said. “It’s all over. Illyana, what do we do? Illyana?” She turned and saw Illyana had crouched on the floor, rocking back and forth, tears running down her cheeks. Rahne hadn’t seen that in years.

“Oh my god.” Rahne crouched in front of Illyana, and the two friends did the only thig they could do—hold each other and cry.

8

8

**_…New York City, Five Years Later…_ **

Steve Rogers came out of the wine shop with the bag in his arm and into the street at night. He checked the time on his phone and cursed under his breath. He thumbed a contact and brought the phone to his ear. 

When he got an answer, he said, “It’s me. I’m running a little late. If you wouldn’t mind…” He trailed off.

A circle of blue fire seven feet wide formed on the sidewalk to his right. He could see the landscape of Limbo, and a few paces past it, another circle opening into the foyer of Doctor Strange’s house in New York.

Steve walked through the circles. When he was in the foyer, the path through Limbo closed behind him. Illyana and Rahne were waiting at the top of the stairs. Illyana’s engagement ring hung on a chain around her neck. 

Illyana tsked, “Naughty, naughty Captain America. Keeping me waiting could start a new cold war.”

Steve smiled. “I brought the wine,” he said. “That should be worth at least a nonaggression pact.”

8

8

They ordered delivery food and ate in the sanctum’s kitchen. Then they drank wine and made small talk.

At one point, Steve said, “I haven’t told Natasha about you, as we agreed. But she could use some help. Word is that Barton is becoming more active, and somehow staying one step ahead of everyone. A teleporter who can go anyplace she can envision and a supernose might come in handy. And get you guys out of the house.”

Rahne said, “I won’t speak for ‘Yana, but who says Natasha needs my nose? Doesn’t she have Logan on speed dial?”

“My understanding is that Natasha and Logan are not speaking right now,” Steve said. “Which in spook world means you don’t even mention getting them together unless the world is ending in five minutes.”

“In other words,” Rahne said with a smile, “a typical Tuesday for the Avengers.” She turned serious. “You can say ‘hi’ to Natasha for us if you want. But we’ve…already decided that we really don’t feel like getting…involved…without the others. May be selfish to say it’s not fun anymore, but that’s where we are.”

Steve nodded. “You guys were tight, Rahne, even compared to the X-Men.”

“Oh, Aye, Steve. You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Kurt’s David Attenborough impression: ‘Und here vee see a pack of New Mutantz--”

Illyana got up from her chair. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice shaking, “I can’t do this. I just can’t act like…” She trailed off and hurried out of the kitchen, leaving an awkward silence in her wake.

Steve said, “Uh, yeah, it’s been, uh…” He let it hang.

Rahne nodded. “It’s five years to the day since Roberto proposed. I’d never seen her happier. And I had a good cry about Dani this morning, so I can’t blame her.”

8

8

After dinner, Rahne walked Steve out to the street.

As they stood on the sidewalk, Steve said, “I was at my counseling group, and I told them we have to move on. But people like us can’t really do that.”

“Yeah, but your powers don’t change who and what you are,” Rahne said. “Illyana and me, we have a slightly different problem. We can both become something else and move on to somewhere else and leave Earth and humanity behind, which is a kind of suicide. Whether it’s taking off all your clothes and walking into the woods as a wolf or dropping into Limbo with horns and a tail and closing the door behind you, the result is the same. We don’t do it out of obligation to each other and we’ve convinced ourselves we should keep an eye on this place and the other sanctums now that all the sorcerers are gone.”

“Is it really necessary? I haven’t heard of anything…weird…if I can say that.”

Rahne shrugged. “We went to the Dark Dimension last week, to make sure Dormammu wasn’t going to take advantage of the situation. Turns out they got clobbered too. The dimension beyond time where nothing died still saw half of everything there die, including Dormammu’s sister. He had one, believe it or not. You should have seen him. We didn’t have the heart to threaten him, and he was actually a charming host. And as you say, it got us out of the house for a couple hours.

“Other than that, we really just want to stay here, and that’s fine. It’s a nice house, nice neighborhood, and a nice little church a few blocks away. I’m on a first name basis with the little old ladies who run the place. So not a bad place to wait to die of old age, two eccentric old ladies in the house with the funky window. Or wait for a miracle, whichever comes first. Don’t suppose Natasha has any miracles left over from her spook days?”

“Given how much time you spend praying, Rahne, I would think you might have a line on that.”

“God answers all prayers, Steve. It’s just that sometimes, the answer is ‘Screw you.’”

“I think I heard that one different.”

“Yeah, well, you have Illyana as your housemate for five years and see if you don’t get a little bit of a potty mouth.”

They said their goodbyes and hugged. Steve watched Rahne go back in the house, then turned and headed down the street. 

8

8

Standing in the New Asgard stables on a cloudy afternoon, Brynhilde the Valkyrie smiled as Rahne and Illyana stepped out of the limbo portals which closed behind them.

Rahne hugged Brynhilde. When they disengaged, the dark-skinned Valkyrie said, “Rahne, what did you do to Hrimhari the last time you were here?”

Rahne smiled back. “Basically, I let him know that sexually harassing a werewolf is a bad idea.”

“Rahne, he’s a werewolf! From your perspective, an Asgardian wolf god.”

“Aye, Hilde, and you know what else he is? My bitch.”

Illyana said, “And you really don’t want to know how she did it.”

“Coming from you, ‘Yana, that means something,” Valkyrie said. “I will remain blissfully ignorant.”

Rahne crossed to one of the stables, where a winged horse came to greet her.

Rahne said, “Hi, Brightwind.” She dug a hand in her pocket. “Got some genuine New York sugar cubes just for you.”

Illyana said, “How’s Thor doing?”

“You missed him,” Valkyrie said. “The Hulk and the racoon showed a couple of days talking crazy and he took off with them. For all we know, they’re on an intergalactic…”

Illyana turned away, wandering towards the entrance to the stable.

“…pub…are you listening?”

Illyana hissed, “Rahne! Tell me something hasn’t changed.”

The whites of Rahne’s eyes turned black as she sniffed the air. “Bloody hell.” She ran to stand by Illyana. Below the hill the stable sat on, in the town and on the docks, the number of people had suddenly increased. Valkyrie came to stand by her friends. She cupper her hands over her mouth as she sucked in air.

A voice behind them said, “Illyana. Rahne.”

The three women spun to see Doctor Strange’s transparent astral form standing in the middle of the stable. 

Illyana said, “Stephen, what happened? I just felt something like what I felt that day. It felt like the infinity stones, but I thought Thor said they had been destroyed. Where have you been? Were you among the dead? But if you found a way to use the stones again, that would explain it.”

“It’s not just the people,” Rahne said, “but there’s more life. I can smell it and hear it.”

“Did you reconstitute the stones somehow?” Illyana said. “Or was there another set? And what about that Thanos character--”

“’YANA!” Strange interrupted. “Sorry. I’m always a little cranky when I come back from the dead. But yes, the Avengers…I know it sounds crazy, but they time traveled into the past, got past versions of the stones, and brought the forward and brought back everyone who we lost. But a version of Thanos from 2014 also came forward--”

Illyana and Rahne looked at each other and chorused, “Rio!” A stepping disk opened behind them and they ran into it.

“…in time,” Strange finished. “Tony Stark and Peter Quill, meet Illyana Rasputin and Rahne Sinclair. Until I met you, they were the biggest pains in my ass, although right now they are trying to reclaim the title.”

8

8

Dani and Roberto had barely enough time to realize Rahne and Illyana were running out of a stepping disk and when Illyana crashed into Roberto and kissed him, as Rahe likewise had liplock with Dani.

Then Sam realized Doctor Strange’s astral form was standing next to him.

Sam said, “Hey, Doc. Good seein’ ya. How you been?”

“Well, other than being dead for five years, can’t complain.”

Sam chuckled. “Glad you got better.”

Strange wasn’t laughing. “Sam. You and I really were dead for five years. Along with half of all living things…everywhere.”

“Whoa. Explains why Rahne and ‘Yana…How’d that happen?”

“I was starting to bring Illyana and Rahne up to speed when…well…”

“Yeah, what is it with those two? Cannot leave ‘em alone for two seconds.”

“On the bright side,” Strange said, “thanks to them, I know astral forms can get ulcers, too.” 

“Same old story, Doc, the bad kid leads the good kid astray.”

“Tell me about it, Sam. The churchy ones are always the worst.”

“’Scuse me?”

“Presbyterians, of course.”

“Of course. Explains a lot if you look at it that way.”

Strange stepped forward and said, “Uh, ladies? I don’t mean to interrupt, but we have some ground to cover and no time.”

Illyana and Rahne broke their respective kisses and faced the sorcerer. (Lockheed happily perched himself on Illyana’s shoulder.) 

Illyana said, “Sorry, Stephen, but you were saying…?”

“Yes,” Rahne said, “you said something about time travel? Seriously?”

“Yes, Rahne,” Strange said, sounding a little exasperated, “seriously.”

“It’s not that,” Rahne said. “The Reverend Craig was big into Doctor Who, and I never really got into—well, never mind. You were saying?”

Strange said, “Yes, Thanos has brought an army with him, and he’s going to try and get the stones and tear down the whole universe.”

Illyana snapped, “Like hell he is! Where’s the fight, Stephen?”

“Avengers HQ, Illyana, or what’s left of it. I’ve got all the sorcerers trying to organize and transport everybody from Wakanda and Asgard--”

“We’ll meet up in Asgard,” Illyana said. She turned and looked at Dani. “Unless I miss my guess, you’ll want to make a pit stop.”

Dani smiled. “I’d insist.”

8

8

Steve couldn’t help himself. He turned his back on Thanos’ army and watched as the portals opened. Doctor Strange came back from wherever he had been to, and portals also opened from Hong Kong, Wakanda, and Asgard.

And Illyana and her friends came with the Asgardians. Dani and Valkyrie were both wearing Valkyrie armor as they rode astride winged horses; and Illyana, Rahne and Sam were in yellow and black armor. 

Pepper Stark landed in front of them. She nodded to her husband, the turned to the mutants as her armor’s helmet retracted. She smiled. “Glad to see you kids back. Think you’re up to this?”

Illyana’s eyes glowed as her soulsword ignited. “Oh, yes.”

‘Berto said, “You know, I think Rahne had a point. Let’s just find a judge after this. Or go to a wedding chapel in Vegas. Five years is long enough to wait for a honeymoon, don’t you think?”

Illyana smiled. “Absolutely--”

Steve’s voice cut through the noise of the assembling army. “Avengers!” Everyone quieted down. Then Steve added, “Assemble.”

Lockheed launched from Illyana’s shoulder, snorting blue flame. Sam took to the skies with Dani and Valkyrie. Roberto and Rahne transformed, their armor changing with them. And then Illyana was running with her friends—her family—into battle and into their future together.

THE BEGINNING


End file.
